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City of Melrose, MA
Middlesex County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
For the removal of sand, gravel, quarry, loam, sod or other earth materials other than that which is incidental to and in connection with the construction of a building for which a permit has been issued in accordance with Article X and for processing and treating raw materials, the following conditions shall govern:
A. 
Removal and processing operations shall not be conducted closer than 50 feet to a public street or to any property line.
B. 
All equipment, except mobile equipment for sorting, washing, crushing, grading, drying, processing and treating, or other operation machinery shall not be used closer than 100 feet to any public street or to any adjoining property line.
C. 
Off-street parking shall be provided as required in the Table of Off-Street Parking Regulations.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See § 235-32.
D. 
Any access to excavated areas or areas in the process of excavation shall be adequately posted with "Keep Out – Danger" signs.
E. 
Any work or bank that slopes more than 30° downward shall be adequately fenced at the top.
F. 
Adequate provision is to be made for drainage during and after the completion of operations.
G. 
Lateral support shall be maintained for all adjacent properties.
H. 
The use of explosives shall be done in accordance with the regulations for storage or handling of explosives as published by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
I. 
All operations shall be conducted in such a manner so as to comply with the laws of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts regulating water pollution and air pollution.
J. 
Provision shall be made for the adequate control of dust during the operation.
K. 
Required site plan. Site plans shall be filed with the Building Commissioner for any land which is used or intended to be used for the extraction of sand, gravel, rock, loam, sod and associated earth materials. Site plans for the removal areas shall be prepared by a registered professional engineer and a registered land surveyor at a scale of 200 feet to the inch and shall be in accordance with and indicate the following:
(1) 
Property lines.
(2) 
Adjacent public streets.
(3) 
Water supply and sanitary sewerage systems and temporary and permanent drainage systems for the site.
(4) 
Topographic mapping showing contours at intervals of not more than 10 feet.
(5) 
Replacement of at least four inches of topsoil over all excavated, filled or otherwise disturbed surfaces and seeding with a perennial cover crop, reseeded as necessary to assure uniform growth and soil surface stabilization.
(6) 
Submission of plan for lighting if night operation is contemplated.
(7) 
Proper provision for vehicular traffic, service roads and control of entrances and exits to highways.
(8) 
The relocations of existing and future buildings and operations machinery to the removal areas.
(9) 
Delineation of the existing removal areas and the proposed area for removal in the immediate future.
(10) 
Provision for a substantial fence enclosing the excavation or quarry where any excavation or quarry will extend under original ground level or will have a depth of 10 feet or more and create a slope.
L. 
Required reuse plan. It is recognized that land reuse of a removal site is in the public interest. Therefore, a land reuse plan(s) must be submitted to and approved by the Building Commissioner, following review by the Planning Board, subject to the regulations set forth in the following subsections:
(1) 
The Building Commissioner may require that up to three approved alternative future land reuse plans be submitted for such land as is used for the extraction of sand, gravel, rock, loam, sod and associated earth materials. A land reuse plan is also required where an existing extraction operation is extended below the grade of adjacent ground.
(2) 
Said land reuse plan and its implementation applies to the conversion of the abandoned site and its planned reuse, including landscaping and erosion control. It is, therefore, required that any land reuse plan correspond to a situation which could reasonably occur in the immediate future (zero to five years) and be revised as necessary as the existing physical character of the removal area changes.
(3) 
The land reuse plan or any part thereof which reasonably applies to an area which has been abandoned from removal use shall be put into effect within one year of the abandonment of said operation. "Abandonment" for the purposes of this subsection shall be defined as the visible or otherwise apparent intention of the owner or user of the land to abandon the use of the land.
For the filling of any pond, lake, swamp or other existing body of water or wet area and the filling in of any swale, valley or other area or depression, where such filling in requires an amount of fill equivalent to 500 cubic yards or more or where the area to be filled in exceeds 10,000 square feet and where such filling has received prior approval of the appropriate state officials under the applicable provisions of state law on inland wetlands, the following conditions apply:
A. 
A location plan at a scale of one inch equals 650 feet showing the area to be filled in, property lines within which the filling is proposed and tie-in to the nearest road intersection shall be submitted.
B. 
A site plan shall be submitted to a scale of one inch equals 40 feet of the premises and surrounding area within 100 feet showing, in addition to Subsection A above, existing and proposed contour lines at intervals of not more than two feet resulting from the proposed filling in, in relation to the topography of the premises, said plan to be prepared by a registered professional engineer or registered land surveyor.
C. 
Provision shall be made for temporary and permanent drainage of the site.
D. 
Fills shall be limited to terrace fills which are not to exceed 10 feet at any one time nor be within 10 feet of an adjacent property line or any cut.
E. 
Regrading of all or parts of the slopes resulting from such fill shall be carried out.
F. 
At least four inches of topsoil shall be replaced over all filled or otherwise disturbed surfaces with seeding with a perennial cover crop, reseeded as necessary to assure uniform growth and soil surface stabilization.
G. 
A plan for lighting, if night operation is contemplated, shall be submitted.
H. 
Where any fill will have a depth of 10 feet or more and create a slope of more than one in two, there shall be a substantial fence enclosing the fill at least six feet in height with suitable gates. Such fence shall be located 10 feet or more from the edge of the fill.
I. 
The planned filling in shall be consistent with any recreation, conservation and open space plan as prepared by the Planning Board.
J. 
Documentation shall be submitted as to the effect of such filling in on drainage both within the immediate area and sufficiently far downstream as required by the Building Commissioner.
For the filling of any lot or placement of fill on a lot where such fill exceeds 10 cubic yards, a building permit shall be required prior to the commencement of the operation in accordance with Article X of this chapter and shall be subject to the following conditions:
A. 
Unless waived by the Building Commissioner, information, including a site plan, pursuant to § 235-74K, area to be filled, volume of fill, proposed changes in grade or other information shall be submitted to and approved by the Building Commissioner prior to commencement of operations.
B. 
No fill shall be deposited within the minimum front, rear or side yards as defined by the zoning district within which such lot is located except by written approval of the Building Commissioner.
C. 
Operations, including truck access, temporary or permanent grade, slope, fencing and protection from wind and water erosion, shall be conducted in a manner agreeable to the Building Commissioner so as to protect the public health, safety and general welfare.
D. 
Operations shall assume to be completed at the end of a twenty-eight-day period from the date of the initial commencement unless extended by written approval of the Building Commissioner.
E. 
At the conclusion of operation, the filled area or fill materials shall be left in a manner approved by the Building Commissioner to assure soil surface stabilization and proper drainage of the site, including provision of topsoil and seeding or reseeding so as to support a perennial cover crop.
F. 
The filling shall be consistent with other provisions of this chapter and Building Code of the City of Melrose, as approved by the Building Commissioner, and shall be consistent with any recreation, conservation, open space and environmental plans, regulations or statutes of the commonwealth or the City of Melrose.